Yom Vanunu?

I've just received an email announcing a vigil at the Israeli embassy in London for Mordechai Vanunu on the day before his birthday.

Here's the email's content:

There will be a vigil for the nuclear whistleblower,Mordechai Vanunu(on the eve of his 61st birthday):

Israeli Embassy,Saturday,10th October, 12-2pm

The vigil will call for him to be allowed to leave Israel.

Diplomatic triumph as Obama authorises Iranian nuclear strike against Israel

News just in from The Guardian.  Obama is thrilled with his diplomatic triumph whereby Iran is happy to launch a nuclear strike against Israel and Netanyahu is happy because he really does have something to be unhappy about.  It looks like win-win for Obama.

More detail from Hurry up Ha'aretz's diplomatic correspondent, Sarah Hannahs Braun in Tel Aviv.  "I am happier than I have ever been in all my years as Israel's Prime Minister" said Binyamin Netanyahu (or "Bibi").  "I really have something to be unhappy about and so I cannot contain my joy."

"Well, if you're happy I'm happy" Hannahs Braun told Bibi "though I am sure I would be equally happy no matter what you were happy about even if it was a completely opposite thing."

Iran threatens self-defence, shock!

Here's The Independent today:

Tehran said it will respond with “full force” to any attack on its nuclear facilities after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged global action to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

In a speech to the UN General Assembly, Mr Netanyahu warned that the world has less than a year to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power, a prediction that will raise fears of a military confrontation.

Iran "is strong enough to defend itself and reserves its full right to retaliate with full force against any attack," said Eshagh al-Habib, Iran's deputy UN ambassador. He insisted the country's nuclear programme was peaceful.

I was impressed by the first comment below the line from an Ian Watson:

Lets look at the evidence shall we...?

Israel has ignored 150+ UN resolutions, Iran has ignored 4.

Israel has attacked openly every one of its neighbours in its short history. Iran has not attacked any neighbour and only defended itself when the US and UK cajoled Iraq to attack them leaving a million dead.

Israel has refused pointedly to sign the NNPT, has refused to allow the IAEA into its Dimona area whilst Iran has allowed the IAEA to monitor its stockpile, facilities and research programmes.

The IAEA has stated recently that Iran's 20% enriched uranium has reduced on a par with produced medical isotopes, not one ounce of Uranium has gone unaccounted for.

The Intelligence communities of the US STILL agree that Iran finally closed down its last research programme into nuclear weapon design and had in fact stopped all proper research some years earlier.

Netahanyu has "predicted" every year since 1992 that Iran would have a nuclear weapon "very soon".

Iran has fairly withdrawn some facility inspections until the IAEA give it guarantees that its inspection will not be used for military intelligence purposes for Israel and the US, this is a fair option seeing as we would not allow the Chinese or Russians to wander round Aldermastion or Fort Lauderdale would we?

Well over a year ago a friend of mine pointed out to me that when Israel threatens Iran the oil price goes up but when Iran responds to the threat the oil price stands still. It could be that the threat and the response are too close together in time to tell but it does look like the serious money is on an Israeli attack on Iran rather than the other way round.

Cause and effect in MidEast nuclear arms race

Here's a letter which appeared in The Independent last week. I missed it at the time but caught it in The Week magazine:

So let me get this right. William Hague warns that Iran acquiring nuclear weapons would start a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. Where is the sense of history? Fifty years ago, John F Kennedy was firmly opposed to Israel acquiring nuclear weapons for precisely that reason. By that measure, hasn't the good Mr Hague got cause and effect interchanged?

PH Ladbrooke

Cambridge

Tbe Independent headed the letter, Blind to history whereas The Week headed it, Nuclear muddle. There's no reference to the original article or letter to which PH Ladbroke was responding. I'm guessing it was this from Feb 18.

Mordechai Vanunu seeks permission to leave Israel

Here's a piece by Duncan Campbell in The Guardian on the treatment of nuclear whistle blower, Mordechai Vanunu, by the Israeli authorities:

Britain has a responsibility towards Vanunu, a man who gave his story to a British newspaper – the Sunday Times – and whose kidnap and removal from Italy started on the streets of London; Israel had not wanted to embarrass Margaret Thatcher's government by carrying out the deed in the UK. It is time that the British government recognised the British link and spoke up for a man who risked his freedom and his sanity because of his hatred of nuclear weapons. And high time that a peaceful man in a violent world was allowed to live his own life in peace.

I have always wondered why the successive UK governments have been so cavalier about a kidnap that was initiated in London.

Mordechai Vanunu

Letter in today's Guardian:

Today marks seven years since Mordechai Vanunu, the Israeli nuclear whistleblower, was released from Ashkelon prison to face the assembled world's media, having served his full sentence of 18 years (11.5 years in solitary confinement) for revealing the truth of Israel's clandestine nuclear weapons programme. Since his release he has faced no further charges regarding any "secrets" he is still supposed to have, yet it is for this reason he is not allowed to leave Israel and suffers daily restrictions on his freedom of movement, speech and association. It is time the British government called for these cruel restrictions to be withdrawn so he can leave Israel immediately, as he wishes.

Ben Birnberg Trustee, Free Vanunu, Jim Boumelha President, International Federation of Journalists, Jeremy Corbyn MPParliamentary human rights group, Jeremy Dear General secretary, National Union of Journalists, Kate Hudson General secretary CND, Bruce Kent Trustee, Free Vanunu, Jon Sen  Film-maker